By TIM BOOTH
AP Sports Writer

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) - The New Jersey Devils have acquired P.K. Subban from the Nashville Predators in exchange for Steven Santini, Jeremy Davies and a pair of draft picks.

Just hours after taking American center Jack Hughes with the No. 1 pick of the NHL draft, the Devils landed a star defenseman on Saturday to potentially share the ice with their new young forward in the future.

Subban was thought to be on the trade block because of his $9 million salary cap hit for each of the next three seasons.

But it's a fit for the Devils, who are expected to have more than $30 million in cap space. The former Norris Trophy winner spent the past three years in Nashville and had 31 points in 63 games last season. But after consecutive early playoff exits, the Predators are clearly trying to make changes and open up cap space.